Rip Curl Gromsearch Kicks Off In Durban Next Weekend

June 11, 2008: – – The 2008 edition of the Rip Curl Gromsearch series kicks off in Durban next weekend when the first of the four events that will crown the country’s top surfers in the 16-and-under age categories is staged at Dairy Beach on 21 and 22 June.

With stops in Durban, Mossel Bay and Cape Town, and the finalists from each event invited to the Grand Finals to be held ‘somewhere’ in KZN in November, this year’s Gromsearch offers over R50,000 in prize-money to competitors in U12, U14, and U16 boys and U14 and U16 girls’ divisions.

And the top U16 boy and girl at the SA Grand Finals earn air tickets and priceless invitations to compete in the Rip Curl International Gromsearch Finals against the winners of domestic Gromsearch series from around the world including Australia, USA, Brazil, Europe, Indonesia and New Zealand.

This event is held during the Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach ASP World Tour event in Australia at Easter each year and the quality of South Africa’s junior surfers was proved when Dale Staples from St Francis Bay won the U16 boys division earlier this year, with Sarah Baum from Athlone Park finishing third in the girls.

“We’re excited to be bringing the Rip Curl Gromsearch series to the shores of South Africa again this year,” says Rip Curl SA marketing manager Dane Logie. “Over the years the Gromsearch concept has identified some of the top surfing talents around the globe and we’re proud of Dale Staples and Sarah Baum’s results at the International Finals in Australia earlier this year.”

The Rip Curl Gromsearch series is sanctioned by Surfing South Africa (SSA), the national controlling body for the sport, and forms part of the SSA Pro Surf Tour (PST) with ratings points from each event counting towards the annual PST champions.